Compass-forceps for surgery and the like



0, 1954 P. D. CURUTCHET COMPASS-FORCEPS FOR SURGERY AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 19.1952

INVENTOR;

Patented Aug. 10, 1954 COMPASS-FORCEPS FOR SURGERY AND THE LIKE Pedro Domingo Curutchet, Loberia, Argentina Application September 19, 1952, Serial No. 310,515

, 6 Claims.

This invention relates to a compass-forceps and more particularly to a compass-forceps for surgery to be preferably used for surgery of deep anatomic regions.

The known forceps consist usually of two branches or legs which are elastically connected together at one end. Thus when the forceps is not working, the free end or tips of the branches are separated by an elastic force of a steel spring at the joint. In order to operate said known forceps or more particularly to cause the tips thereof to engage each other, the surgeons hand must overcome a considerable elastic force which in some instances such as in the case of long forceps reaches about 1,050 g. This considerable effort which is demanded from thegfingers of the surgeons hand produces rigidity of the muscles and thereby decreases the agility and precision of the surgeons movements. Furthermore when the surgeon grips an anatomic element with such a known forceps the fingers are unable to control the pressure exerted on said anatomic element or part since they have to overcome the powerful elastic force and thereby the kinesthetic sense is impaired.

. A further drawback of the known forceps is that during the whole operation it must be employed by the same hand from the beginning to the end and therefore fatigue of the hand and progressive numbness are unavoidable.

A still further drawback is that the length of the known forceps or more particularly of its branches is relatively limited, because upon increasing the length, the force required forvclosing the tips reaches an inadmissible value.

Bearing in mind the above described and further known drawbacks, a new compass-forceps for. surgery and the like has been conceived comprising atop branch having a curved portion and a first tip remote from said curved portion, a bottom branch having a second tip, a pivot pivotally linking said top branch to said bottom branchat a point remote from said first and second tips and adjacent said curved portion, 'a blade-like grip integral with said bottom branch and located between said pivot and said second tip and a holder integra1 with said top branch, located between said pivot and said first tip and in the proximity of said blade-like grip when the forceps are in closed position, said first operative ends of said compass-forceps.

From the foregoing it is apparent that itis an object of the invention to provide-a compassforceps which eliminates theantimanual elastic 2 force of the known forceps, so that the fingers of the surgeons hand may hold it Without the slightest effort and with substantially no possibility of it ever escaping from the grip of the fingers.

In other words, it is an object of this invention to provide a compass-forceps with which itis possible to hold the tips thereof in engagement with just the indispensable pressure to overcome the resistance of the material which is clipped.

Another object is to provide a compass-forceps having cylindrical branches to avoid the discomfort produced to the fingers by the anti-anatomic edges of the known forceps.

A still further object is to provide hollow branches, so that the instrument will be lighter and thus transmit a certain amount of tactile. vibration, or in other words to increase the tactile perception of the forceps work, for instance during dissection.

A further object is to provide a compassforceps the structure of which enables longer branches to be provided with no detriment to its m'anuability.

Another object is to provide a compass-forceps which in practice may be held closed indefinitely,

pelled to interchange their roles so that an 'anibi-.

manual instrument is of considerable advantage.

Another object is to provide a compass-forceps which provides agility, easiness and quickness of handling, due to the absence of an elastic force that tightens and stiffens the surgeons hand.

A. further object is to provide a compassforceps enabling maximum precision to be obtained, because the bottom branch remains relatively stationary and can thus beset and will remain set at the exact point desired.

A still furthenobject'is'to provide a smooth and efiicient digital contact, due to the cylindrical shape of the branches and an anatomic de-.

sign of the grip and the holder.

Another object is to increase the sensory perception through the transmission by the hollow branches and the blade-like grip.

' Still another object is to provide an efficient hold of the instrument due to the manner in which it is taken, to its ample finger contact on the fluted surfaces of the grip and holder and to the abutment of the top branch against the condyle of the head of the second metacarpal.

Another object is to provide a graduation at will of the pressure at the tips of the forceps, according tothe thinness or hardnessof thestruetures, without harming them.

A further object is to provide a compassforceps the branches of which may be quickly. separated Lmder the control of the forefinger, whereas in known forceps this. movement. is.

rushed by the drive of the elastic force of the linkage.

Another object is to provide a comfortable hold of the instruments for: lionrsati'aatim'e, as; it does not demand any exaggerated contraction of the hand muscles, since there is no parasite elastic force.

Still another" obj ect is t'o' provide the possibilityof" dissecting. with a Wadwith the left hand while the rightoneis' dissectingwit-ha lancetor' scissors.

These and further objects and advantages will: become apparent d'urin'g the following descriptionin which, by" way of example a specific embodiment is described;

In" the drawings? Figure 1 is aperspective View of the" compass= forceps. of the present invention; as held by a surgeons" hand.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the compassforeeps of this invention;

Figure" 3 is: a plan view of the compass forcepsv ofJFigure' 2,1but'with the tip" of the top branch cut. away.

Figure l is a cross-section along lineIV-IV of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a. detail in perspective View of" the guiding device of. the top bottom'branches.

Although reference; is'mainly made to the ap-- pl'i'cation in surgery, it is obvious to those skilled" in. the art that the instrument may be applied to'other uses, and thus'the scopeof this invention mustbe so understood:

As may be seen mainly in' Figures 1' to 3, the compass-fbrcepsfor surgery, and the likeof. the presentinvention.comprises. a top. branch I hav-' ing. a. curved portion Z'Which is an. end portion and a first tip portion 3, and a second or bottom branch. 4, having a. second tip-51 The curved portion 2'. ends. in..-a fork 6' inwhich a projection 1. of the bottom. branch is rota-tably housed; Both the fork. 6' and? projection. l are coaxially. perioratediormingthe. housingiof apivotSj whichv hinges or pivotally links. thetop. branch Lt'o. the. bottombranch 4'..

In. the. embodiment. shown, the. clamping. faces 3! and. 5. are. serrated (see Figure. 3) have; two small perforations S; in. order to vide a. positive.v grip... However the. shape and. direction of. the. tips. ofj'the compass-forceps may vary,. they might be serrated, smooth, perfor.ated, straight, angle-shaped, etc.

The. legs. or. branches I. andA are hollow as may be seen in Figures4and 5;.so.that. the weightv oi.v the.instrumentisreducedias much. as possible, as. previously stated.

In order to hold. and. adequately control the instrument, the bottom branch 41. is. provided. with a. blade-like grip lfl locatedbetweensaid pivot & and saidsecond tip-i and said-top branch. I is provided witha holder 4''. Inrthe embodi-- ment shown, the bladelike grip l0 consists of surand.

two doubly concave blades l2 and I3 substantially symmetrical with regard to a plane of symmetry passing through the center lines axes l4 and l5 of the straight parts of branches l and 4. The concavities are directed outwardly and are adjacent to each other, as may be best seen in Figure 3.

The holder H is a ring slightly inclined towards thetip 3 and having: anrinnerfiut'ed surface IE to prevent the forefinger from slipping as. will be later explained. The holder ii is located in proximity of the blade-like grip ill but is: directed upwardly so that in combination with the blade-like grip 30, the instrument may be held as shown in Figure 1. More particularly the bottom branch 4 is held at three points, namely; at; the zbackaportion 2?, bearing against the eondyle of the head of the second metacarpal; at the front by the middle finger it, resting on one cavity of blade l2 and finally by the thumb l9; resting on one of" the concavit ies of the other blade 53. The: proximity of" these fingersmay vary as required: by thedegree of" precision of the job and that is 'why the blades and l 3" are doubly: concave:

The top branch i as previously stated; curved at 2 in-or-der't'o passby and bearlightly on thehead of'the second metacarpal 2 This branch- I is movable and its ti'p 3'- movedfrom and to the tip 5'- by' actuating movement of the forefinger 2 F, inserted inthe holder or ring it, which asstateo'f, is fiuted' at Ill-in order to prevent the finger from slipping.

From the foregoing it' may be under-stood that thegrip isso-universal that it may be held either hand.

By moving the forefinger" Z-t upwardly and downwardlythe' ti'ps 3" and ii are perfectly-core trolledin-their opening and closing movements.

In orderto prevent any lateral dislocation of the-tips 3 and- 5 and" to determine at the same time the limit of separation thereof a guiding device 22 is provided and consists of a rail 23 (see- Figure 5 located immediately in front f the grip 10 and having: a top projection 24. Said-railmaybe-grooved if desired. The'upper branch'is provided'with a thinshank 25 located immediately in front of holder H slidably'sur rounding-said rail '23 and having at thefree end projecting ears 2'6" which are" capable of engag-- ingthe" top; projection 2'4 and thereby limiting the maximum separation of tips 3 and 5.

It is obvious that any other suitable guiding device or pivotalconnection'maybe provided in.- stead of these shown, as long' as they comply with the purposes specified. Pnrthermore the curved portion 2 may obviously. be replaced by any other suitable shape, such as for instance a rectangular shape. In order to cover 'all'possible variations concerning said curved portion the expression. a pivot distancing. porttiCnP'for the purpose of' this invention is to be understood as broad enoughto cover said variations..

I claim:

1'. A. com-passrforceps for surgery, and the like comprising a top branch having acurve'd portion and'a first tip remote fromv said. curved-portion, a. bottom branch having a second tip,. a pivot pivotally linking saidtop-branch to. said bottom.

branch. at a. point. remote from said. first and.

second tipsand. adjacent to said.curved. portion,. a. blade-like grip on; said. bottom branch and located: between. said. pivot and said; second: tip. and; aholden on. said: topbranch located: between- 5 said pivot and said first tip on the outer side and disposed to be in the proximity'of said bladelike grip when said tips are engaged.

2. A manual compass-forceps for surgery and the like comprising a top branch having a curved portion and a first ti remote from said curved portion, a bottom branch having a second tip, a pivot hinging said top branch to said bottom branch, at a point remote from said first and second tips and adjacent to said curved portion, a grip for the thumb and middle finger of the hand on said bottom branch and located between said pivot and said second tip and a holder for the forefinger of said hand on said top branch and located between said pivot and said first tip and above'said gripwhen said tips are in engagement, said first tip and said second tip being capable of entering in contact with each other and constituting the operative ends of said compass-forceps.

3. A compass-forceps for surgery and the like comprising a hollow top branch having a first end portion and a second end portion, said first end portion being a curved portion having a free end and said second end portion being a first tip having a first clamping surface, a hollow bottom branch having a third end portion and a fourth end portion, said fourth end portion constituting a second tip having a second clamping surface facing said first clamping surface, said free end forming a fork and said third end portion being swingably mounted in said fork, a pivot pivotally linking said fork and third end portion, a grip formed of two doubly concave blades having outwardly directed cavities symmetrical with regard to a plane of symmetry passing through the center lines of said top and bottom branches, said doubly concave blades being on said bottom branch and located between said pivot and said second tip, a ring on said top branch and located between said curved portion and said first tip and adjacent to and above said two doubly concave blades, said ring being inclined towards said first tip, said first clamping surface and said second clamping surface being capable of entering into at least partial contact, and a guiding device for guiding said top and bottom branches.

4. A compass-forceps for surgery and the like comprising a hollow top branch having a first end portion and a second end portion, said first end portion being a curved portion having a free end and said second end portion being a first tip having a first clamping surface, a hollow bottom branch having a third end portion and a fourth end portion, said fourth end portion constituting a second tip having a second clamping surface facing said first clamping surface, said free end forming a fork and said third end portion being swingably mounted in said fork, a pivot pivotally linking said fork and third end portion, a grip formed of two doubly concave blades having outwardly directed cavities symmetrical with regard to a plane of symmetry passing through the axes of said top and bottom branches, said doubly concave blades being on said bottom branch and located between said pivot and said second tip, a ring on said top branch and located between said curved portion and said first tip and adjacent to and above said two double concave blades, said ring being inclined towards said first clamping surface, said first tip and said second clamping surface being capable of entering into at least partial contact, a guiding device for guiding said top and bottom branches and comprising a rail extending from said bottom branch and located between said grip and said first tip, said rail having a top projection, a shank extending from said top branch and located between said ring and said first tip, said shank being in sliding contact with said rail, said shank having projecting ears for engaging said top projection of said rail and thereby limiting the maximum separation of said first and second tips.

5. A compass-forceps for surgery and the like, comprising a top branch having a pivot distancing portion and a first tip remote from said pivot distancing portion, a bottom branch having a second tip, pivot means pivotally linking said top branch to said bottom branch at a point remote from said first and second tips and adjacent to said pivot distancing portion, a blade-like grip connected to said bottom branch and located between said pivot means and said second tip, a guiding device between said top branch and said bottom branch, and a holder on said top branch, located between said pivot means and said first tip.

6. A compass-forceps for surgery and the like, comprising a rigid top branch having a pivot distancing portion and a first tip remote from said pivot distancing portion, a rigid bottom branch having a second tip, pivot means pivotally linking said top branch to said bottom branch at a point remote from said first and second tips and adjacent to said pivot distancing portion, a bladelike grip on said bottom branch and located between said' pivot means and said second tip and a holder on said top branch, located between said pivot means and said first tip.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Witt Nov. 1'7, 1914 OTHER REFERENCES Number 

